Princess Diana Forgot 1 Major Thing During Her Wedding to Prince Charles

Princess Diana and Prince Charles didn’t have the smoothest marriage. On the outside, things seemed fine between the two, but unbeknownst to the public, Diana and Charles were always lacking love. And this was apparent even on the couple’s wedding day, when Diana forgot one major thing while she was up at the altar.

Diana and Charles were never a perfect match

Though they seemed like a stately royal couple, there was a lot going on behind the scenes that the public didn’t see at first. Charles was actually in love with Camilla Parker Bowles, with whom he had been in a relationship prior to leaving to serve time in the British Navy. While he was away, Camilla reportedly wrote to him to tell him she was marrying Andrew Parker Bowles. When Charles returned, Camilla was already married, so he had to find someone else. He was introduced to Diana, and the two only dated for a short time before getting engaged.

The two essentially wed because they had to

Though Charles and Diana appeared to be a good match, they weren’t getting married because they wanted it. Charles was getting older, and there was increasing pressure on him to find a wife. And it has since come out that Diana often felt trapped in her relationship with the prince. The two only went on 12 dates before deciding to get married, and it was more pressure than true love. When asked if they were in love, Charles infamously replied “whatever ‘in love’ means,” showing the world his heart wasn’t in it the way it should have been.

The day before the wedding, Diana told her sisters that she didn’t want to go through with marrying him. But at that point, everything was said and done, and her sisters told her it was too late to back out.

Princess Diana and Prince Charles | Anwar Hussein/WireImage

Diana forgot Charles’ correct name while at the altar

Since Diana had admitted she didn’t want to go through with the wedding, it’s clear there was a lot on her mind the day of the nuptials. Certain hiccups, such as her wedding train not fitting in the car she took to the church, only made things more stressful. And when she got to the altar, she accidentally called Charles by the incorrect name. Instead of saying “Charles Philip” Diana said “Philip Charles.” Only the people in the very front rows, if any, could hear the mix-up, but it still wasn’t a good look for the princess — or anyone — to mess up the groom’s name on their wedding day.

There were obvious signs the couple’s relationship wouldn’t last

Even from the start, it was clear things
weren’t right between Diana and Charles. His infamous response to asking
whether the two were in love was probably the biggest red flag, but other
things, such as his clear love for Camilla, the rush to find a wife, and Diana
admittedly not wanting to go through with the wedding all came together to
create a storm of a relationship that would not last. Diana and Charles
separated once she learned of his rekindled affair with Camilla, and their
divorce was finalized in 1996.